


The Light Side of the Stiles

by iKnightWriter (orphan_account)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Allison Argent & Vernon Boyd & Erica Reyes, Alpha Derek Hale, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Banshee Lydia Martin, Beacon Hills is a Hellmouth, Buffyverse - Freeform, Derek is a Good Boyfriend, Episode: s07e03 Same Time Same Place, Healing, Hurt Stiles, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Misunderstandings, Nemeton, Pack Bonding, Pack Feels, Stiles Comes Back, Supernatural Elements, Tagging as I go, True Alpha Scott McCall, Vernon Boyd and Erica Reyes Came Back
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-03
Updated: 2015-05-31
Packaged: 2018-03-16 02:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3471797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/iKnightWriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles is coming home, but unfortunately for him it doesn't seem like anyone is actually ready to forgive him for what he had done those 5 months ago.</p><p>Sequel to the Dark Side of the Stiles</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Coming Home

**_ONE MONTH AGO_ **

It had happened while Stiles was settling into his seat, while Derek was getting everything else settled for their trip. Stiles eyes were closed, when he started to hear the familiar buzzing. The humming of the Nemeton. He could feel it and calling out to him.

“Whatever it is that you that you want,” Stiles told it with his eyes still closed, “It’s not going to happen. So find some other desperate soul to prey on. I just want to go home and be with my friends.”

“Oh my dear boy,” A voice filled his ears, “What makes you think you have any friends left after what you did to them?”

It wasn’t the voice of the Nemeton that spoke to him, that much Stiles knew. But there was something vaguely familiar about the voice.

Stiles opened his eyes found himself, not on the plane back to Beacon Hills, but surrounded by darkness. It was the same darkness when he had begged for the tree to bring his father back. Only this time it wasn’t just the tree stump that he was facing. It was his Nogitsune doppelganger, that sat perched on the Nemeton with a smirk on it’s face, “Hey there Sparky.”

And as it placed it’s hand upon the trunk, the stump itself started to decay just as Stiles found himself caught in the same trap the Nogitsune had used before. Only this time the Nogitsune said nothing to him as he started to drag Stiles closer and closer to the stump.

All the while, Stiles released a silent scream.

“Stiles, you're all right!" Derek’s voice flooded into his ears. Stiles opened his eyes and found Derek kneeling in front him, while the passengers of the same flight they were on being pressed up on the sides of the plane by a grey energy field.

Stiles hadn’t realized he was shaking and crying until he felt Derek arms around him, "You're all right. Stiles, you're all right." Derek repeated to him, holding him tightly. It works as the energy field holding the passengers release them. Without another word, Derek and Stiles boarded off the plane and headed back to the Coven.

* * *

_** PRESENT DAY ** _

“I don’t think…I can.” Stiles voiced, looking out the large window of the room he had been staying in for the past month, he felt comforting arms wrap around his waist, “I don’t think not without you.”

“That’s your fear talking.” Derek whispered into his ear.

“My fear's a big obnoxious blabbermouth,” Stiles confessed to him, “And you're the one who keeps telling me to trust my instincts.”

“True.”

“Shouldn't we be listening?” Stiles asked, turning to face Derek this time, “Shouldn’t we just stay here?”

“Only you know the answer to that.” Derek told him.

Stiles placed his forehead on Derek’s shoulder, “I don't want to go back home just so I can screw up again.” Stiles stated into his shoulder, “I’m just too scared.”

“What is it, exactly, you're afraid of?” Derek asked him.

“How about the Nemeton calling out to me, only to have the Nogitsune possibly killing it.” Stiles told him stepping away from Derek as he started to pace around the room, “I don't know if I can handle it if it turns real, and what if I can handle it? Does that mean I have to be a bigger, badder badass than the source of all badness? What if I have to give up all this control stuff and go all veiny and homicidal and what if ...”

“They don't take you back?” Derek asked him quietly. It was still a topic that they had been discussing for a long time now.

“Well…yeah.”

“Stiles.” Derek called to him as he grabbed him by the hands, “We could remain another two years here, training and practicing, learning to hone your powers. But the Nogitsune is gone.” Derek gave him a gently hand squeeze, “The Nemeton called out to you for a reason. Scott and the others don’t hold what you did against you. They want you home.”

There’s a beat between them, even though Stiles was still unsure, “That’s all you got?” Stiles asked him meekly.

“For the moment, yes.” Derek told him with a small smile.

Stiles took a deep breath, “Okay.” He released, “Guess I'd better ...”

“Trust yourself.” Derek whispered to him gently, “Because I do.” Derek whispered to him softly as he press his lips against Stiles'.

* * *

Scott McCall had been staring at the TV with the sound on mute. On the end table beside him was the stack of the Star Wars movie collection. He remembered how Stiles always had been making references from the movies that he didn’t get and now that his best friend had gone to god knows where it was the only he could still feel connected to him.

Over the past five months he had learned something that Derek had failed to mentioned. Even losing human members of the pack hurt. Probably even more so since he had considered the Sheriff to be his own dad and Stiles to be his brother.

The thought seemed to have dampen his mood even more as he continued staring at the screen blankly when Allison Argent walked into the loft to find him in the exact position she had left him hours ago.

“You’re not really watching that, are you?” She asked him gently as she sat down beside him, leaning on his shoulder.

“I honestly don’t even know what’s going on.” Scott confessed quietly, “The best I can get out of it that the humans are the aliens in that universe. Guess it really doesn’t even matter since I’m on the on last one anyway.”

“Actually it does considering this is the first one.”

“No, it’s the fourth one.”

“The fourth one is the first one.”

Scott sighed and turned off the TV as a whole and a tight silence filled the air, “What if he never comes back?” Scott asked her in a small voice.

“He’ll come back Scott, we’re his family.” Allison took a hold of the True Alpha’s hand, “We’re all he has left now.”

A quiet silence fell between the two, when the loft door opened suddenly as the members of the Beacon Hills Pack walked right through all talking and laughing, but immediately stopped when they noticed the expression on the True Alpha’s face.

“I take you didn’t hear about the news.” Lydia said, breaking the tense silence that threatened to settle between the pack.

It had been that way for five months. Five months of Scott suddenly becoming temperamental and rash when it came to dealing with the rouge supernaturals of their town. Even more so he had become slightly distance with the others as they faced. It was like he was desperately trying to prove that he could save everyone, even if he did fail his best friend.

“He’s coming back.” Erica beamed at Lydia’s side, “Batman is coming back.”

“Tonight.” Isaac chirped just as excited, “Derek just put him on a plane and he’s coming home tonight.”

They looked at Scott who’s face remained expressionless, “Scott didn’t you hear what they just said?” Allison asked, when Scott doesn’t give a reaction.

It seemed like seconds and hours ticked by as the Alpha didn’t say anything, “Stiles is coming home.” Scott finally as his face broke into a smile for the first time in five months, “He’s finally coming back to his family.”


	2. Disappearing Act

The time was 9:24 pm according to the clock that was placed under the Beacon County International Terminal sign. The waiting members of the Beacon Hills Pack were all looking expectantly to the terminal where a plane was now releasing it’s passengers.

“You think he'll get the sign?” Isaac asked worriedly looking down at a poster board that read “Welcome Home Batman aka Stiles.”

“Get the sign?” Lydia questioned in a dismissive tone,  “I doubt he'll see the sign.” She told him pointing at the faded batman logo that had been placed right beside Stiles’ name.

“Yeah,” Allison agreed looking it over, “Why's it so, like, faded?”

“I used yellow crayon.” Erica explained to them, “The batman emblem is black and yellow, but since someone,” She cuts her eyes at Boyd, “Had failed to get the black poster board I told him to get a month ago, it was all I had.”

“For the last time I said I’m sorry.” Boyd told her in a monotone voice.

“Uh-huh.” Erica countered with heavy doubt in her voice as a silence fell over the group as they watched more passengers leave the terminal, “I'm getting nervous.” Erica confessed to the group. She wasn’t the only one who felt that way, but she was the only to admit it out. She looked over to Scott in particular, “Are you nervous?”

“Yeah,” He admitted, “Tt's gonna be weird seeing him again.” Scott hadn’t taken his eyes off the terminal, “I love him and everything, but how do you...” He struggled to find the right words to say, “What do you say to someone in this situation?”

“I'm going to say "Hi Stiles.”” Isaac offered up to them. A family consisting of a man and two children walk pass them.

“Are you saying it isn't going to be strange?” Allison asked him, “You guys saw him kill someone.” She reminded them, “He was about ready to kill all of us.”

“We have no one to blame, but ourselves,” Lydia reminded them softly, “We had so focused on making sure that we were protected we didn’t even think about him.” She stood in front of the were-creatures and the huntress with a teary-eyed expression, “We left the glue of this pack all alone when we were being terrorized by the Alpha Pack. If anything we brought it on ourselves, especially after that damned demon left that darkness in him. We shouldn’t have made the same mistake.”

“One's an incident, two's a coincidence, and three's a pattern,” Scott recited to them quietly, “There’s not going to be a third.” He told them with his eyes glowing red.

“Besides, Derek wouldn't let him leave if he didn't finish that, whatever, recovery course.” Isaac shared with them, “He cares about Stiles too much to let anything happen to him again.”

“Right.” Boyd agreed easily.

However, the wolves could sense something that Lydia was radiating. Almost like she was hiding something from them, “Right?” Allison questioned her wondering why exactly the werewolves were all staring at the Banshee intensely.

“What is it?” Scott asked, already fearing for the worse, “Did Derek say something?”

“Just that, he kinda didn't finish.” She muttered.

“He didn't finish?” Isaac questioned, trying to make sense of what was happening, “He didn't finish being not evil?”

Lydia shook her head, “Not that. But when he and Stiles were actually on their back the first time. The Nemeton called out to Stiles and Stiles saw the Nogitsune killing it. It freaked him out to a point where everyone on the plane were forced up against the wall.” She shared, “That was just a month ago, but Derek had managed to convince him to come home. He’s been doing really well and we shouldn’t worry.”

“Why would the Nemeton call out to him then?”

“From what I understood, thanks to the spell books Deaton left behind, magic is connected with nature. The Nemeton is part of that, maybe it was a way of telling Stiles not to be afraid and come home.”

“Next time, it should use a clearer message.”

“Guys.” Boyd said to them, getting their attention, “I've just noticed something...Everyone's off the plane.

The pack took note of Boyd’s observation. He was right. No more people were coming out the terminal. And none of the wolves sense could pick-up that missing scent.

“So... where's Stiles?”

No one notices that the clock on the Beacon Hills County Terminal sign, had remained on the same time.

Just as the man with the two kids exit the terminal, Stiles walked out tentative and nervous, clenching onto his carry-on bag. He looked around the waiting area and noticed that no one is there to actually meet him, “Welcome home,” He said to himself softly, “Me.”

Every part of him wanted to turn back and go back to the Coven where Derek was, but he knew he couldn’t let his fear override him anymore, so instead he trudged along trying to fight back the tears that threatened to fall down his face.

* * *

At a deserted construction site, a teen boy was spray-painting graffiti on an unfinished ply-wood wall.

However, the boy doesn’t know that he isn’t alone as a figure from behind him began to move fast from left to right.

The boy kept painting, filling in the loopy black letters with red paint. This time however, he hears something rustle nearby him.

“Is anyone there?” The boy called out into the darkness.

“All alone...” A singsongy filled the night air causing the boy to tense up, “Are you frightened to be all alone?” The voice now sounded, playful almost amused.

The boy looked around him curiously, but doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary, “Whoever you are, it’s really lame to be playing games in the dark.”

“I’m quite fond of games,” The voice said from the darkness, “I haven’t had much excitement in a while.”

Before the boy has a chance to react, something dark lunged at him.

* * *

Stiles stood on the front porch, of the McCall-Hale Pack House waiting. His suitcase and carry on were placed on the ground beside him. He rings the bell for a second time, only to get the same response he had gotten from the first time, which was none.

Stiles sighed tiredly and gave up, picking up his luggage and trudged toward the side of the house. From there, Stiles entered through the back door into the lighted kitchen.

“Hello?” He called out into the house, walking through the kitchen. He looked at the clock on the wall, just above the stove that showed 10:41 pm.

Stiles continued to walk through the house, hearing nothing, but sounds of clocks ticking by as he made his way up to the second-level of the house.

Getting to the second-story of the house, Stiles stood in front of a familiar door. He took a deep breath and pushed the door, only to find an empty room. The room was full of Scott and Allison’s furniture with multiple photographs hanging on the walls.

As Stiles walked farther into the room, he sees that Scott's clothes are draped over the back of the desk chair. Stiles made a small smile, glad that his friend was still the slob he grew up with.

There's a clock on the bedside table that read 10:44pm.

Something on the desk caught his attention and Stiles makes his over to it. On the desk was an address book. Stiles opened to the first page. It was listed as “Family Numbers.” On it were five numbers, "Erica, work," "Boyd's office", “Lydia and Allison’s, studio” and "Isaac, cell."

Nowhere in the book was there anything about him, but Stiles doesn’t get a chance to fully process this when a sound of a door being slammed, startled him.

However, when he reached to the bottom of the stairs he sees no one. He stood in the middle of the living room, dumbfounded, “I thought I heard…”

Stiles shook his head and placed himself on the sofa in the horizontal position leaned and closed his eyes.

* * *

A wall clock by the front door read 10:41 pm, when the Beacon Hills Pack entered through the front door of the house.

“Derek absolutely put him on the plane.” Lydia told them as they all gathered into the living room.

“So maybe he got off in Chicago when they stopped?” Isaac offered to them.

“He could have caught a flight anywhere from there.” Erica told them with a worried expression.

“Or he doubled back, got off the plane after Derek left.” Allison theorized as well.

“If he's doing that, ducking Derek,” Scott questioned, “Does that mean he’s evil again?”

“I avoided Derek tons of times,” Isaac reminded them. Everyone remembered how brutal the training sessions were in the beginning when there were rouge hunters all over Beacon Hills, “And it just meant I was lazy, not evil.”

“Well I hope you're right,” Boyd told them with his arms crossed, “Because a defeating Lazy Stiles, is definitely less hard.”

“We should check the messages, see if he tried to reach us here.” Allison told them.

Scott closed the door firmly and immediately everyone could hear a thump coming from upstairs. The wolves immediately get on guard, “What was that?” Allison whispered as she has her small bow armed and ready, “Shouldn’t you guys have picked up on another scent here?”

“There’s just us here.” Isaac told her as he concentrated on the surroundings. All of them and so far there was nothing foreign around the area. Everything seemed perfectly normal.

“Stiles?” Scott called out, breaking away from the group, “That you?”

Scott ran up the stairs only to find an empty hallway.

* * *

In the middle of the living room were sleeping bags that formed a circle. Each member had their own personalized blanket that Stiles had made for them when they all moved into the pack house together, “Catwoman” “Scarf Lover” “Ariel” “Kate Bishop” “Iron Giant” and “The Hot Girl”

“He didn't leave a message.” Scott told them sadly as he closed his phone. He lets out a heavy sigh.

“I checked with Derek again too.” Lydia told them, “He hasn't heard from him either.”

“I can only assume there some unpleasant exchange of words coming from his mouth?” Erica with a knowing expression.

“He's blaming himself pretty hard.” Lydia shared with them, “Like, he should've known he wasn't ready. I tried to tell him it wasn’t his fault.”

“Maybe it was us,” Boyd whispered roughly, catching everyone’s attention. Boyd was never really much a talker in the pack,“I mean, maybe he doesn’t think we’re ready to forgive him.”

“But we all do.” Allison countered, “Surely he knows that.”

“I don’t think just hearing it from Derek was enough,” Scott spoke, messing with his fingers,  “But we're going to let him know. Even if he doesn't think that he deserves it.”

"Sounds like a great plan if, you know, he was here." Isaac inputted.

_Even though the couch appeared to empty to the pack in the living room. Stiles was actually sleeping on the couch._


	3. A Dark Return

Stiles woke up from his position on the couch. He was still alone as the sun began creeping through the curtains of the living room.

Wordlessly, Stiles stood up and stretches out his body. He even reaches for the house phone and stares at for a moment. He knew Derek would come running for him the moment Stiles called for him, but for some reason Stiles couldn’t bring himself to dial the number.

It wasn’t like he wanted to tell Derek that no one came for him, meaning that they still hadn’t forgiven him, but at the same time he needed someone.

 _Maybe as a little check-in_ , Stiles thought to himself as he began dialing the number to Coven that he stayed with, “Yes, hello.” Stiles spoke as soon as someone picked up for the phone, “I'm calling for Derek—Derek Hale... Right...He did have a trip to go on... Sorry, I forgot sorry to bother you.” Stiles hung up the phone and looked around the living room feeling very lost.

* * *

Instead of staying inside the house all day, Stiles headed out to the downtown area of Beacon Hills. He parked his jeep in a local parking lot and started walking his way through the town.

Not much as had changed in the past five months. Stiles was actually thankful that he hadn’t actually wreak havoc on the town itself. But that didn’t stop the sympathetic stares he had gotten from the townspeople. Stiles was somewhat thankful that they had managed to keep his name of out the supernatural meltdown that he caused.

Trying to ignore all the looks that were being thrown in his direction, Stiles walked down the Beacon Hills towards the animal clinic.

What he saw was something completely unexpected. The building was still in the damaged state after the battle between him and Deaton. However, there was now yellow crossing tape where the window used to be read “CAUTION DO NOT CROSS” and on the door there were "CLOSED" and "CONDEMNED" signs on the front of the building.

From the front door of the building, Stiles sees Marin Morrell coming out with a box full of supplies, “Ms. Morrell!” Stiles shouted, getting her attention.

Marin Morrell looked up and sees Stiles from across the street, she took three steps backwards, right back into the doorway as Stiles came running over.

“What are you doing here?” Marin asked completely on guard, “I thought you were with Derek studying how to control your power and not kill people.”

“I just got back.” Stiles told her in a small voice.

“And you're back 'cause you're all better or you're back to bring about a fiery apocalypse of death?”

“Neither.” Stiles quickly assured her, “ I know your job is to maintain balance, but I have been studying.” Stiles with a nervous smile, “Working really hard. I'm going to be fine.”

“Oh good, because I remember the last time you said that.” Marin reminded him, “I've spent a lot of the time trying to make sure that demon didn’t try to destroy the entire town. You know that kind of thing.”

Stiles couldn’t talk without stammering, “I want to help any way…I can with that. I feel really responsible.”

“You feel really responsible?!” Marin asked in an incredulous tone, “In a way you are really responsible.” She told him in a hard tone, “You’ve upset the balance so much. You’ve willingly hurt your pack and you killed two people.”

“I know I hurt you by attacking your brother.” Stiles admitted, “And everyone. I'm sorry.”

“Here's a little something you should know about Druids.” Marin told him, sharply, “We don't groove with the "sorry." In fact, despite our peaceful nature we do have a dark side. We call it the Darach and right now my dark side is all for the "Oh God, please stop hitting me with my own rib-bones!"”

“Go on do your worse,” Stiles told her with his hands stretched out in front of him, “If it helps restore the balance then I deserve it.”

“And you won't mind?” Marin asked cautiously.

“No.”

There was a pause in between them, “As an emissary it's your responsibility to restore the balance of your pack, not mine.”

“So, um, where is everybody these days?” Stiles asked in a casual like way as both he and Marin both sat down on the end of the curb.

“Well, my brother is handling some case down in New Orleans. Apparently they were having an overpopulation of witches.”

“And...my pack?” Stiles stammered slightly.

“You haven't seen them?” She asked, making a worried expression.

“Not so much.”

“Huh, guess they're still mad at you.” She shared absentmindedly, “ They've been a little temperamental lately, just between you and me. We had a bit of a mix-up a few days ago-”

Stiles hadn’t already stopped listening to what was being said, “That sounds great. So where do you think they'd be?”

“Oh, at the high school, probably.” Marin shared, “Everyone's all about the high school right now. Scott's making sure that the supernatural students aren’t going nuts and exposing everyone. Allison started coaching the Archery team. Lydia’s teaching AP Biology, Erica and Isaac are running the hell out the cross country team.” She shared, “Boyd is doing some construction for the new gym, if you get there early you might be able to catch them, they normally help out if he doesn’t have his crew.”

* * *

Stiles didn’t waste any time rushing his way to the school. Only when he got there it was completely deserted. The only thing Stiles could see was a pit where it seemed like the new gym was going to go.

“Scott?” Stiles called out as he reached the edge of the pit. There was a ladder that protruded over the edge, “Scott, you down there?” Stiles received no response and decided to climb down the ladder into the pit.

Finally, finishing his way down the ladder Stiles turned to see the dead body of the teen boy from earlier. His spray cans and bloody torn clothes are scattered. He has been flayed. The exact same way Stiles had done to Deucalion.

_In the exact same place_

Scott and Lydia stood alone looking at the body. They were a lot closer to the body. Scott looked a little nauseated, while Lydia looked a bit stoic.

“No skin.” She examined looking at the scene.

“Tough to look at.” Scott commented, clearly looking away.

“And yet my eyes refuse to look away.” Lydia whispered, “Stupid eyes and stupid banshee senses. I found it first thing this morning.” She told him, I gave Boyd’s crew the day off, and called you instead.”

Scott look a deep breath and stared at the body. It was a horrible sense of déjà vu. It was the same thing he had seen 5 months ago.

His enhanced hearing picked up the sounds footsteps climbing the ladder. Scott turned his head back towards the ladder, but doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

 _Stiles is climbing back up on the ladder. He’s stumbling and shaking and streaked with tears_.

Scott dismissed the ladder and turned his attention back to Lydia, “Maybe Stiles is back.”


	4. Everyone's Talking

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Erica commented when the rest of pack met up with Scott and Lydia near the pit after seeing the body, “He wouldn’t just come back to town and start killing people just for the hell of it.”

“Besides there is no way that Derek would’ve sent him on that plane if he didn’t think Stiles was ready.” Allison told them, “Nemeton or not.”

“We don’t even know if he’s even in town.” Isaac reminded them, “I mean, we would’ve been able to catch his scent by now. Especially if he’s roaming around the town.”

The entire pack was trying to figure out Stiles reasoning for killing or even if it was Stiles that had killed the teen boy.

Scott remained quiet as he thought back to his previous statement he had said before down in the pit, “Can I take it back?” Scott asked aloud, looking helpless at the pack. This stopped the theories and stories that had been filling the air surrounding them.

“Take what back?” Boyd pondered with a curious expression.

“Saying it's him.” Scott told them, “It was the first thing that popped into my mind when I saw the body.” He whispered shamefully. He had been the most positive about entire recovery, but now Scott found himself second-guessing, “Guys, I can't let it be him.” Scott whispered tearfully, Because that would mean...” He struggled with words, “What would it mean?”

“It would mean we lost him again.” Allison stated in a small tone.

“I don't want that.” Scott said in a heavy tone, taking a shaky breath, “I don't want us to lose him.” He declared with his eyes glowing the Alpha red, “I don't want him to be lost.”

In response to the declaration, Erica, Isaac, and Boyd’s eyes glowed the beta yellow in agreement, while Allison and Lydia both replied with “Nous protégeons ceux qui ne peuvent pas se protéger.”

* * *

Inside Beacon Hills High Stiles was walking down the halls still in shock from finding the body. He walked shakily being ignored by the students as they all rushed to their next class before the final bell rang.

Soon Stiles was walking by himself, down to the basement. Even though it was still daylight, it was dark, with a little sunlight barely making its way through the cracks of the foundation.

Stiles was on guard as he was now approaching a corner. Before turning the corner he slowed down and took a breath. Turning sharply around the corner there nothing that seemed to be out of the ordinary. Stiles leaned against the wall with sighs of relief.

Only to have something lunged right at him, “Ahh!”

Thanks to the small source of light, Stiles could see that it was William Barrow. He was dirty-looking, rumpled, and appeared to have been burned by something, but it wasn’t just his appearance that Stiles noticed. No, Barrow was very raving and angry.

“Out! This is my place!” He declared, swinging his arms around, “You need permission to be here. You need a special slip with a stamp!”

“Barrow, what happened to you?” Stiles asked in shock at the appearance.

See for years, the Nogitsune had possessed William Barrow, forcing him to do all kinds of things, the same way it had done to Stiles. The only reason why Stiles wasn’t borderline rabid like Barrow was because Stiles’ possession only lasted for a month or so. Barrow had the Nogitsune in him for years, before it caught wind of Stiles.

After the Nogitsune bailed out him, William was never the same again. When Scott and the others tried to get Eichen House to take him they claimed that he failed to meet their “special requirements” to enter the facility. In other words, since he wasn’t a supernatural being of any kind they weren’t going to take him in.

So they really had no choice, but to seclude the poor man to the basement. There were special wards that had been painted along the walls to prevent anyone not part of the pack from entering or escaping.

“Can't you see? Read it on my face.” William raved at Stiles, “LOOK!” He pointed to his forehead in a manic manner.

“I don't--” Stiles started to say, only for Barrow to charge at him still angry. Stiles managed to dodge the assault and placed himself against the door.

“You go off and try to wall up the bad spots, put your heart back in where it fell out, and you call yourself finished, but you're not.” Barrow declared spewing nonsense, “You're worse than ever, you are.”

Stiles could feel a vibration radiating throughout his body. He knew it was the Spark, trying to fight its way to the surface for protection, but Stiles made calm and slow breaths even though his heart was beating rapid.

Barrow suddenly shifted to calm state as he turned away from Stiles and shown interested in another part of the empty room. Stiles watched him carefully.

“You went away.” Barrow stated, not facing Stiles, but at the darkness.

“I needed to go.” Stiles explained, “But I'm back and I just found... there's a body...”

“Tragedy.” He commented, but finally faced Stiles with interest written all over his face, “Is there blood?”

One of the things Stiles learned for his own experience with mental patients is that you had to go along with whatever they were saying. Even if it doesn’t make sense to you, it does to them.

“Um, yeah.” Stiles shared with him, “And I couldn’t find my friend’s and now there's something killing people.” Stiles shared, hoping that maybe he knew something, “The victim was skinned. What would do that?”

“Didn't see it, never saw it. Didn't say I did.” Barrow quoted as if he were in a trance, but it broke just as quickly as it came, “You did it once.” He spoke accusingly, “I heard about it.”

“Anything other than... other than me?”

“Lots of things like skin.” Barrow rambled, “I mean, who doesn't like skin?”

“What kinds of things? I have to know.” Stiles questioned him, “Is there anything else that could have done this?”

Barrow’s face turned into an expression that seemed like he was far off somewhere, “Look at you, glowing.” Barrow admired, looking over Stiles, “What's a word means glowing? Gotta rhyme.”

“William?” Stiles tried, wondering what exactly the man was talking about.

William suddenly crumpled in the face of whatever he's seeing, cowered from an unseen threat, “I should hide, hide from you. Hide my face. You know what I did.”

“What you did? You didn't do this.” Stiles reminded, thinking Barrow was talking about the things he had done while being possessed, but then something clicked in his mind, “You didn’t kill him did you?”

Barrow started shaking his head urgently, “Not the time. Not the time. Probably better left unsaid anyway.” He muttered softly, “Unsaid things grow healthy in the dark, little tadpoles...” His face then fell to realization, “Everyone's talking to me, no one's talking to each other.”

“Please, try to listen to me...” Stiles begged him.

“Someone isn't here.” Barrow muttered to himself, “Button, button, who's got the button?” He questioned aloud, “My money's on the spark. Sparky is a bad boy. They made him go away, you know.” Barrow leaned just a tiny bit away from the corner, “He told me.” Barrow whispered as if he were telling a secret, “Shh.” He placed a finger over his lips.

Stiles knew that there was nothing more that he could get out of Barrow. Not when he started to get like that, “I'm... I'm sorry about whatever...” Stiles told him turning the handle of the door, “But I think I should go.”

He was just about to open the door when Barrow opened his mouth, “They think you did it.” Stiles could feel his heart hammer inside his chest, “The Banshee and her Huntress. They think you took the skin.”

* * *

Allison and Lydia were down in the basement themselves armed with flashlights. The pack had split up each dealing with a task in order to find out what exactly was going on in their town, “You can't use the blueprints to find your way around, down here.” Allison told her as they moved through the darkness, “Seems like the walls move or something...”

“I think I hear him.”

Allison led them around a corner. They both see Barrow having a conversation with the air.

“...and you call yourself finished, but you're not.” Barrow stated to the air, “You're worse than ever, you are.”

“If I didn’t know any better it’s like he actually is talking like someone is there.” Allison whispered to her.

Lydia agreed. Barrow was all types of messed up now, but this was something new, “William.” She called out to him.

Barrow took his attention away from the air and faced the girls, “You went away.”

“Yeah. You scared me a little, in the warehouse.” Lydia admitted. “I think we need some time apart.”

“We're here for a reason, William.” Allison told him, taking a step in front of Lydia.

“Tragedy.” Barrow responded, “Is there blood?”

“He knows.” Lydia realized, “He must have seen the body.”

“Wouldn't that mean he had gotten out somehow right?”

“I don’t know," Lydia admitted, "But right now I need to handle one supernatural crisis at a time.”

“Didn't see it. Never saw it. Didn't say I did.” Barrow stated, but then turned his attention to the air, “You did it once. I heard about it.”

“We need to know who did it.” Lydia told him, “Who skinned the boy out there?”

“Did you hear anything or see anything?” Allison tried as well.

“Lots of things like skin. I mean, who doesn't like skin?” Barrow continued by for some reason he was staring at Lydia, “Look at you, glowin'. What's a word means glowing? Gotta rhyme.”

“William, please...” Lydia begged softly.

“I should hide, hide from you. Hide my face. You know what I did.” Barrow told her.

Allison stood next to Lydia was an unimpressed expression on her face, “Boy, he's extra useful today...”

“This isn't the time.” Lydia told Barrow in a stern tone.

“Not the time. Not the time. Probably better left unsaid anyway.” Barrow rambled, “Unsaid things grow healthy in the dark, little tadpoles...” Realization fell onto his face, “Everyone's talking to me, no one's talking to each other.”

Lydia released a defeated sigh and turned away from the man, “We might as well go.” She told Allison.

“Someone isn't here. Button, button, who's got the button?” Barrow asked them, “My money's on the spark. Sparky is a bad boy. They made him go away, you know.” He leaned away from the corner, “He told me.” He whispered as if it were a secret, “Shh.” He placed a finger over his lips.

Allison and Lydia exchanged looks, “Stiles.” Allison realized quickly, “He's talking about Stiles.”

“And that means something because he's chock-full-o-sanity.”

“Well, it doesn't exactly make it less likely.” Allison pointed out, “Maybe he saw him.”

However, Barrow was no longer paying attention to them, he was busy talking to the air, “They think you did it.” He shared to the air, “The Banshee and her Huntress. They think you took the skin.”

“Barrow, is there something here?” Lydia asked, turning back around, “Something that killed?”

“I have to go.” Barrow told them, “There's things here without permission and I have to check their slips, make sure they have authorization.”

With that being said, Barrow shuffled off around a corner, leaving Allison and Lydia alone.

“It means nothing. Right?” Allison asked hopefully, “He mentioned Stiles and it means nothing.”

“Right.” Lydia agreed grimly, “He also mentioned tadpoles. We're not going to jump to conclusions about those either, one way or the other.”

* * *

Marin was in her apartment organizing the stuff she had from earlier to send to her brother. Only she got interrupted when the sound of urgent pounding came from her door. The last time someone came pounding on her like that was when there was an angry spark coming after them, “All right!” She shouted impatiently, “Keep your underpants on!”

She opened door and was surprised to see Stiles on the other side.

“I need help.” Stiles told her.

“I don't have any money.”

“I don't want money!”

Marin gave him a look over tilted her head towards the inside of the apartment, “Come in.”

“I found a dead body near the high school.” Stiles told her as soon as he walked in.

“Yes, that can happen.”

“Something horrible killed a boy, Marin.” Stiles told her, taking a seat on her couch, “Took his skin off.”

There was a beat as the two glanced at each other, “Was it you?” They asked each other at the same time.

Even at the question both reacted just as offended as the other and replied with a firm, “No!” at the same time.

“With the skin thing, they're definitely going to think it was you.” Marin told him, “Well Scott is, anyway.”

Stiles nodded his head with dejection, “Yeah. Maybe he already does.” Stiles muttered sadly, “I don't know. I just... I need to find whatever really did it. Because I need to do something right.”

“And so they'll see it wasn't you.” It came out as a statement rather a question. Stiles nodded once again, but she gave him a knowing look, “Maybe you're even thinking, you kill this thing, they never even have to know about it, don't have to suspect you even for a minute?”

Stiles looked over at her with a surprised face, “When did you get all insightful?”

For as long as Stiles had known her, Marin was just as cryptic as Deaton.

“I'm surprisingly sensitive.” Marin confessed with a straight face.

“So... will you help me?”  He asked with hope in his voice.

“Is it difficult or time-consuming?”

In a matter of hours, Marin’s apartment was completely transformed. The blinds were down, candles were lit, the floor was cleared. Marin and Stiles sit on the floor, facing each other. An open map of Beacon Hills laid between them.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Marin questioned him.

“I hope so. You have your powder?”

“I have it.” She handed Stiles the bag.

“We scatter it over the map,” Stiles explained taking a handful of power and handing the bag back to Marin, “Everywhere there's a demon, it makes a little light.”

“Will it hurt the carpet?”  Marin asked, taking a handful herself.

This earned her a confused expression, but Stiles answered, “No.” Stiles closed his eyes and began to focus, “Okay... scatter!”

They scattered the powder. Little white lights started to appear across the map glowing. Some singly, others in groups. There was one very bright concentration. They both knew that was the location of the Nemeton.

Both their faces are lit by a white light as Stiles and Marin looked over the map in awe. As Marin looked over the map she pointed at one single light that was closer in town, “What's that huge clump?”

“The high school.” Stiles figured, “It's all Hellmouthy underneath”.

“Probably because of the Nemeton powering it up.” She leaned for a closer look, “Is it... is it getting brighter?”

“Smoke!” Stiles cried out.

Sure enough, a curl of smoke was peeling off the Hellmouth light-cluster. With a little whoosh it busted into flames. They both jumped to their feet with  Stiles stomping out the fire.

“Okay, remember our talk about the carpet?” Marin reminded him.

Stiles picked up the map. Next to the charred hole left where the high school was  a smaller charred pinprick of a hole had taken it’s place.

“That could be it. It's strong. It's near the body, and it's by itself.” Stiles theorized, “Hiding in the woods, or a cave - couple good caves 'round there...”

“It seemed kind of thin to me.”

However, that doesn’t stop Stiles, “It doesn’t matter.” He informed her, “I have to go find this monster.”

Stiles collected his charred map, headed toward the door.

“Stiles, haven’t you tried that locater spell that you used in search for Boyd and Erica?”

Stiles stopped at the door, “I did. I tried.” Stile shared with her, “But something went wocky and it didn't work.”

“What did it say?”

Stiles turned to face her and Marin could see his eyes starting to water, “It said they don't exist.”

Not saying another word, Stiles turned and left the apartment with Marin looking right after him worriedly.


	5. Trip The Darkness

By the time Allison and Lydia made it back to the pack house, Erica, Isaac, and Boyd were in research mode. Erica had been using her laptop, while Isaac and Boyd were flipping through books.

“I looked up demons that "skin" their victims and demons that "flay" their victims.” Erica shared with, “Because, you know, same thing. There's a ton of prospects.” She showed them the list of the creatures that had been pulled up as results.

“Everybody likes skin.” Isaac commented noticing at the long list of names.

“Anything else gone? Eyeballs or toenails or viscera?” She asked Lydia. They hadn’t gotten to see the body and from the look on Scott’s face from earlier she was sure that she didn’t want to herself, “That's guts.” She explained proudly.

“She knows about viscera.” Allison commented at Lydia, “Doesn’t that make you proud?”

When they had all attended Beacon Hills High Lydia had been Erica’s tutor in anatomy, “Just skin.” Lydia told her.

“Okay, I'll work on that.”

“What about you guys?”

“Nothing here in the books that could help us.” Boyd shared with them, “Even if there were answers in here they can’t be translated.”

“Where’s Scott?”

“He went to the Stilinski home to see if maybe Stiles holed himself up there, if not he probably went to the cemetery.” Isaac shared, leaving the rest of his statement unsaid, “Haven’t heard from him since this morning.”

Allison nodded her head with understanding, before walked over to the main couch and pulled out her weapons box. She shuffled through her weapons and bows in an aggressive manner while Isaac crouched beside her.

“What's up?” He asked worriedly.

“I need to do something.” Allison told him, “And I just, I have this feeling in my gut...”

“In your viscera.” He joked, but Allison ignored the joke.

“...that we already know exactly who did this.” She continued frustrated, “And that all this work, it's just us trying to talk ourselves into thinking Stiles all right.”

“He is all right.”

“See?” Allison stated, “And this is taking a toll on Scott, who is all, but ready to lose his mind over this. We’ve lost two members of this pack already. We’re not going to lose another.”

“And I don’t think we have,” Erica announced as the members quickly surrounded her, “I have hit on what could be the suspect of what was the cause for the body in the pit.”

She showed the others a picture on her screen. It appeared that the creature was some type of goblin mixed with a leprechaun demon.

“What the hell is that?” Isaac questioned. 

“Demon called Gnarl, with a 'g'. He's a parasite with these nasty long fingernails.” A voice spoke from behind them, Allison already had a small bow ready, when they turned to see Derek standing right at the doorway, “He secretes something through them and he uses that to paralyze his victims, almost like the kanima,” He explained making his way through the house, “Only instead of killing them flat-out he cuts strips of skin off while they're still alive. He starts in the middle, like belly-button-centric, and works out. It takes hours. Sometimes if he really likes you he'd take shape of the thing you fear the most. Making the experience that much worse for the victim.”

“We didn't find any strips of skin.” Lydia shared with him. They would all rather have a small pack hug, but members were missing and there really didn’t seem like there would be time for one.

“Which, gross by the way.” Isaac inputted.

“You wouldn't. He eats 'em. That's why he's a parasite.” Derek explained, placing his suitcases by the door, “That's, like, his natural food.”

“Double gross.” Isaac shivered.

“I don't see why this guy is any more likely than all the others.” Allison told him, “Erica found literally a thousand of them.”

“You guys never said "pool of blood."” Derek pointed out as he walked into the household.

“What?”

“He’s right,” Lydia muttered with a calculating look, “You get your skin ripped off, normally you'd end up in a pool of blood.” She thought aloud, “There were lots of spatters, no pool.”

“So what you’re saying is he laps up the blood.” Boyd guessed, “You could say it's like, his natural beverage.”

“I think I might throw-up.” Isaac groaned, “How do we find this thing?”

“Whoever did this, they had to get blood on them.” Lydia spoke, “And they'd leave a trail...”

“Right, with small traces of blood. And we have a way to track it.” Derek told them, tapping his nose, “You three stay here just in case Stiles makes an appearance.”

It was the way Derek had said that caused a sense of alarm overcome Erica, “You can’t sense him?”  Derek shook his head and no one decided to question it any farther.

The worry and the tension in the air thicken around them, “Alright, I’ll text Scott to meet us at the preserve.” Allison told them as she pulled out her phone, while she pulled out her knives from the weapons box and handed them to Lydia.

* * *

Allison, Lydia, Scott, and Derek were all out in the preserve with Derek leading the way. When they finally had met up with Scott, his eyes were red from crying rather than him actually flashing his Alpha eyes at the sight of Derek's return. The two Alphas just gave silent nods at each other, but they knew that they didn’t even need to ask where Scott had been because it had appeared evident.

The air was tense around them. No one dared to say anything as they all followed Derek. The only sounds that filled the air was the sound of the crickets and the twigs and leaves being crushed under their weight, “You know before our lives were shot to hell, this place was actually a great place to go camping.” Lydia offered to break the silence.

“You went camping?” Allison questioned with some doubt, “You, Lydia Martin, actually went camping out here?”

“Well, there wasn’t a lot of camping if you get my drift.” Lydia told her with a smirk of hers.

“Stiles and I came out here to get drunk after that night at the school.” Scott spoke up for the first time since they’ve met up, “Unfortunately for me I couldn’t get drunk since you know Peter… had to deal with a super clumsy and drunk friend instead.”

“Remember that time he messed with that trip-wire?” Allison asked him.

“Which left me to have the most horrifying talk with your dad ever, yeah.”

They both let a small laugh at the memory. It was easier back then. With not so many supernaturals in Beacon Hills those years ago.

“I was thinking it would be a good idea for us to do it.” Lydia told them, looking at them, “Just you know have a moment of peace and not having to worry about any kind of meltdown, this town seems to be having. You know a time to heal.”

“We’re here.” Derek finally spoke to them as he led them to a cliff that seemed to overlook the town. It wasn’t exactly like Lookout Point, but it could pass for its opposite.

“This is a rock cliff.” Scott noticed as he stood beside Derek. Just about ten feet in front of them  there was the base of a shear rock cliff.

“It’s got a cave in it.” Allison noticed, “Look.” She pointed up the an entrance that was only a couple feet high.

* * *

Stiles was at the same cave entrance. He looked around at his empty surroundings and hesitated for a second, before climbing to the of the opening.

Once, he was fully inside something skittered in the edge of his vision and began muttering, “All alone...”

_At the same time_

The core four were still on the outside of the cave entrance, “Do we just, you know... crawl in?” Allison wondered.

“The opening looks big enough for you guys to carry us our backs.” Lydia noted to Scott and Derek, “We don’t know if the demon is still there and it would be hard to protect ourselves going in head-first. Especially if it could hide it’s scent.”

“I agree if he comes attacking we’ll least have an offense while you guys are on defense.” Allison calculated as well.

“No argument here.”

Scott and Derek crawled through the opening with ease with Allison and Lydia on their backs. Once they had made through the opening they looked around, “Dark and dank.” Lydia commented in an unimpressed tone, “Why doesn’t this surprise me?”

“Guys, there’s something in here with us.” Scott whispered to them. He and Derek had their claws retracted out, “You hear that?”

Somewhere in the cave both Allison and Lydia can hear the movement Scott had been talking about, “We do now.”

“Guess we're in the right place.” Lydia whispered as she pulled one of the knives from her holster.

* * *

Deeper inside the cave, Stiles continued to walk on getting increasingly frightened with each step. He looked around, reacting to the skittery noises all around him.

“Look at the shorn lamb. See how it trembles.” The voice continued to taunt at him, “Is it the cold wind? Or is it that the flock is nowhere to be seen?”

Stiles wasn’t even aware of the shadow that had jumped behind him.

* * *

The core four were still looking all around them. Allison was now ready her bow aiming from whatever could come popping out the darkness, “Poor little lamb, all alone...” A voice whispered through the cave.

“You guys hear that, right?” Lydia asked with alarm in her voice.

“It's echoing around.” Derek told them as he remained on guard. Even though he and Scott could hear him, there was no way they could actually pinpoint his location without his scent, “He sounds close, guys but he's way at the other-”

Derek doesn’t get to finish his statement as the demon leapt from the darkness catching Lydia by surprise. Lydia released a scream on the assault just Gnarl leapt back into the darkness.

“Where'd he go?” Allison asked quickly rushing to Lydia’s side bow ready, “You okay?”

Lydia stood hunched over with her arms crossed over her midsection. She had a confused and blank look on her face.

“I... I think... so.” She managed to say. She straightened herself up and uncrossed her arms revealing an eight-inch-long slash across her stomach. A seeping, bloody cut was visible, “I feel kinda... I... can't...”

Allison quickly threw an arm over her shoulder, looking at Derek and Scott, “We gotta get her out of here.” She advised them. With no argument, Scott and Derek flanked Allison as they head for the exit of the cave.

“We can't deal…with him now.” Lydia struggled with her sentence, “Seal him in!”

* * *

In the cave, Stiles could hear the commotion that occurred, “What's going on?” He called out in the darkness, “Who's here?”

He sprinted back toward the entrance. As he ran the sound Gnarl's creepy laughter filled the air surrounding.

Quickening his pace, Stiles only managed to  gets back to the front of the cave just in time to see a big rock closing off the small opening, “NO! Stop!” He begged as he straight to the rock wall.

But Stiles realized it was useless and now he was trapped listening to the creepy laughter and noises that were getting dangerously closer to him.

“No way out now.” The voice told him in the darkness, “No way out.”

“Protect me, Goddess.” Stiles chanted quickly and effortlessly with determination, In thy name I supplicate myself. Take the powers from my enemy and lay him lower than the lowest field--”

A high thin piercing laugh came out of nowhere, interrupting him, “Gnarl loves spells.” The voice informed him, “He keeps them as pets. They love him and they leave him alone.”

Stiles doesn’t let the knowledge bother him as he got on the ground, trying to push the rock free and escape. Unfortunately, it seemed like the rock wasn’t ready to be moved anytime soon.

Still determined, Stiles stood up from the ground, “Maybe you're immune to magic, but I got more than that!” He declared with conviction, “You wanna fight?”

A dark shadow shifted in a corner that caught his eye, “Your friends left you here. Even that wolf of yours.” It shared with a hissing tone, “No one comes to save you. They wanted me to have you.”

At the statement, the brave face Stiles had been wearing began to shatter. Be that as it may Stiles backed away from the voice that had been taunting him, still unable to see exactly was causing his distress.

"Did they leave you as a gifty for me?" It asked him, "Are you a tasty little gifty?"

"Shut up." Stiles retorted back.

"Or did they just throw you away?"

"Were they here?" He questioned the voice, "Were my friends here? Was he really here? I heard something--"

Instead of answering Stiles' question Gnarl lunged at him, shrieking, like he did with Lydia, and slashed him across the middle.

Stiles, one hand over the cut across his stomach, collapsed back against the wall and sank helplessly to the ground, "They were here. Here they were." Gnarl told him, "And there they went. Gone all gone, what a pretty song. They sealed you in with me. " Gnarl shared with him, "I think you're a gifty. Which means they either hate you..." While, the demon kept talking, one of Gnarl's spidery hands appeared in Stiles' vision as it closes over his tennis shoe and pulled hard. As a result, Stiles slid down roughly until he was flat on his back, "...Or they love me." He finished as he pulled himself up onto him.

Stiles eyes widen when he realized that what he was seeing was his doppelganger the Nogitsune.

"You're not real." Stiles whispered in a frighten tight tone. He could feel his heart pounding faster each second. There was no way that this was possible. He could clearly remember Scott biting into the doppelganger and turning into a pile of dust. But...here it was right on stop him. Taunting him, just like it did in his vision four months ago.

The Nogitsune/Gnarl sat astride on Stiles, hunched like a vulture as he took sniff of the cut on his stomach, "Very real." The Nogitsune/Gnarl answered him, "Can't wait to unwrap you." It lamented happily.

**Author's Note:**

> I'll update when I can. Don't have an actual schedule for this fic, but I swear I will NOT leave it unfinished


End file.
